heart transplant…

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heart, section, the middle, heart, normal anatomy, the heart, cardiac transplant, transplant, heart, heart transplantation, surgical procedure to remove a damaged, diseased heart, replace it, a healthy donor heart, heart transplant is the fourth most common transplant operation, over 2, 200 cases per year, cornea, kidney, liver transplants, the most common, a healthy heart is obtained, a donor who is brain dead but on life-support, healthy heart is put into a special solution that preserves the organ, patient is put into a deep sleep, general anesthesia, a cut is made, the breast bone, patient's blood is circulated through a heart-lung bypass machine to keep the blood oxygen-rich, patient's diseased heart is removed, donor heart is stitched in place, heart-lung machine is disconnected, blood flows, the transplanted heart, a heart transplant recommended, heart failure, coronary artery disease, cardiomyopathy, the heart muscle, heart valve disease, congestive heart failure, severe heart disease present at birth, life-threatening abnormal heart beats that, not respond to other therapy, heart transplant surgery is not recommended, patients, kidney, lung, liver disease, insulin-dependent diabetes, poor function, organs, types of blood vessel disease, the neck, leg, life-threatening diseases, risks, anesthesia, reactions to medications, problems breathing, surgery, bleeding, infection, heart transplants carry major risks, greater risk of infection, the drugs that must be taken, prevent transplant rejection, signs of infection, redness, drainage, fever, general worsening of health, heart transplant prolongs the life of a patient who would otherwise die, 80% of heart transplants, alive 2 years, operation, main problem, transplants, graft rejection, rejection, controlled, patient's survival, increased to over 10 years, drugs, prevent transplant rejection must be taken, the rest, the patient's life, normal activities, resume, the patient feels well enough, after consulting, the doctor, vigorous physical activities, avoided, major problems, all major organ transplants, finding a donor, fighting the rejection effect, cost, the surgery, avoiding infection, avoiding blocked blood vessels, in the transplanted organ, finding a donor, difficult, in heart transplantation, healthy heart must come, a person who, died, on life-support, brain dead, different than a kidney transplant, a kidney donated by a living person, timing is very important, no good way to keep a donor heart alive, long periods of time, a person in need of a heart transplant kept alive on artificial heart devices, longer, longer periods of time, artificial hearts, major risks, of these devices, fully approved, still considered experimental, fighting rejection, ongoing process, body's immune system considers the transplanted organ an infection, fights it, organ transplant patients must take drugs cyclosporine, corticosteroids that suppress the body's immune response, the downside of these drugs, they weaken the body's natural defense against infection, recovery period is about 6 weeks, patient must move the legs often to reduce the risk of deep venous thrombosis, stitches, clips, removed about 1 week after surgery, zipes dp, libby p, bonow ro, braunwald e, eds, braunwald's heart disease, a textbook of cardiovascular medicine, 7th ed, wb saunders, 641-651.